Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Scott of Bybrook on 20 March (HL3102), what has been the nature of the consultation with representatives of subsequent genocides which will be included in the UK Holocaust Memorial Learning Centre; and what was the outcome of those consultations.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Prime Minister’s Holocaust Commission issued a Call for Evidence which received almost 2,500 responses. The Commission’s conclusions, together with a list of organisations providing formal responses, was published in the Commission’s report Britain’s Promise to Remember (2015).
Comments were invited on the 10 shortlisted designs for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre, details of which were published online and exhibited at sites in London, Edinburgh and Cardiff in 2017. Two public exhibitions of the chosen design were held in 2018.
Full consultation on the planning application opened in January 2019. Around 4,500 comments were submitted online, ahead of the planning inquiry at which 69 people made oral representations. The independent Planning Inspector provided a summary of written representations and a detailed appendix of oral representations in his report recommending that planning consent should be awarded.
The scope and content of the Learning Centre exhibition will be developed by the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation, drawing on a wide range of external advice and expertise. That process has not concluded and the noble Baroness is welcome to make any suggestions or views known to the foundation directly.
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Scott of Bybrook on 20 March (HL3105), on what dates and in which locations or websites the consultations on a UK Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre took place; and whether there is a record of the responses.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Prime Minister’s Holocaust Commission issued a Call for Evidence which received almost 2,500 responses. The Commission’s conclusions, together with a list of organisations providing formal responses, was published in the Commission’s report Britain’s Promise to Remember (2015).
Comments were invited on the 10 shortlisted designs for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre, details of which were published online and exhibited at sites in London, Edinburgh and Cardiff in 2017. Two public exhibitions of the chosen design were held in 2018.
Full consultation on the planning application opened in January 2019. Around 4,500 comments were submitted online, ahead of the planning inquiry at which 69 people made oral representations. The independent Planning Inspector provided a summary of written representations and a detailed appendix of oral representations in his report recommending that planning consent should be awarded.
The scope and content of the Learning Centre exhibition will be developed by the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation, drawing on a wide range of external advice and expertise. That process has not concluded and the noble Baroness is welcome to make any suggestions or views known to the foundation directly.
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Scott of Bybrook on 21 March (HL3106), where the National Muslim War Memorial will be situated; and, if not in Westminster, for what reason.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Further information regarding the process for establishing a new Muslim War Memorial will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government why the National Muslim War Memorial will not be situated in Westminster.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
On 6 March the Chancellor announced funding of up to £1million for a new war memorial to recognise the sacrifice and duty of Muslim soldiers who fought and died for this country in both world wars.
It will be a visible reminder of the important contributions of Muslims to British history, and will promote shared values amongst people of all backgrounds through building a better understanding of faith groups’ contribution to wider society. Further information will be provided in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government which genocides, other than Jewish, will be included in the Holocaust Learning Centre planned for Victoria Tower Gardens; on what criteria they have been selected; whether representatives of those affected communities have been consulted concerning their inclusion; and whether those communities have been asked to contribute to the cost of the Learning Centre.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Learning Centre, co-located with the Holocaust Memorial, will ensure that the lessons of the Holocaust are told with honesty and clarity; it will also address subsequent genocides. Information about the Learning Centre themes was presented at the planning inquiry and is available on the Westminster City Council website: cd_8.9_proof_of_evidence_of_stephen_greenberg_1.pdf (westminster.gov.uk)
The scope and content of the Learning Centre exhibition will be developed by the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation, drawing on a wide range of external advice and expertise.
The current forecast cost (£138.8 million, excluding contingency) for completion of the proposed Holocaust Memorial is set out in the Written Ministerial Statement of 28 June 2023 (UIN HLWS875). An independent charity, The Holocaust Memorial Charitable Trust, Chaired by Sir Gerald Ronson CBE, will lead the effort to secure pledges towards the fundraising campaign.
Extensive consultation on the proposals has been carried out over many years, with contributions from a wide range of individuals and communities across the country.
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government what will be the theme of each of the exhibition rooms constituting the Holocaust Learning Centre planned for Victoria Tower Gardens.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Learning Centre, co-located with the Holocaust Memorial, will ensure that the lessons of the Holocaust are told with honesty and clarity; it will also address subsequent genocides. Information about the Learning Centre themes was presented at the planning inquiry and is available on the Westminster City Council website: cd_8.9_proof_of_evidence_of_stephen_greenberg_1.pdf (westminster.gov.uk)
The scope and content of the Learning Centre exhibition will be developed by the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation, drawing on a wide range of external advice and expertise.
The current forecast cost (£138.8 million, excluding contingency) for completion of the proposed Holocaust Memorial is set out in the Written Ministerial Statement of 28 June 2023 (UIN HLWS875). An independent charity, The Holocaust Memorial Charitable Trust, Chaired by Sir Gerald Ronson CBE, will lead the effort to secure pledges towards the fundraising campaign.
Extensive consultation on the proposals has been carried out over many years, with contributions from a wide range of individuals and communities across the country.
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consultations they have carried out with UK Jewish communities which are not part of the United Synagogue concerning the planned Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Learning Centre, co-located with the Holocaust Memorial, will ensure that the lessons of the Holocaust are told with honesty and clarity; it will also address subsequent genocides. Information about the Learning Centre themes was presented at the planning inquiry and is available on the Westminster City Council website: cd_8.9_proof_of_evidence_of_stephen_greenberg_1.pdf (westminster.gov.uk)
The scope and content of the Learning Centre exhibition will be developed by the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation, drawing on a wide range of external advice and expertise.
The current forecast cost (£138.8 million, excluding contingency) for completion of the proposed Holocaust Memorial is set out in the Written Ministerial Statement of 28 June 2023 (UIN HLWS875). An independent charity, The Holocaust Memorial Charitable Trust, Chaired by Sir Gerald Ronson CBE, will lead the effort to secure pledges towards the fundraising campaign.
Extensive consultation on the proposals has been carried out over many years, with contributions from a wide range of individuals and communities across the country.
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their current estimate of the cost of building the planned Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Learning Centre, co-located with the Holocaust Memorial, will ensure that the lessons of the Holocaust are told with honesty and clarity; it will also address subsequent genocides. Information about the Learning Centre themes was presented at the planning inquiry and is available on the Westminster City Council website: cd_8.9_proof_of_evidence_of_stephen_greenberg_1.pdf (westminster.gov.uk)
The scope and content of the Learning Centre exhibition will be developed by the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation, drawing on a wide range of external advice and expertise.
The current forecast cost (£138.8 million, excluding contingency) for completion of the proposed Holocaust Memorial is set out in the Written Ministerial Statement of 28 June 2023 (UIN HLWS875). An independent charity, The Holocaust Memorial Charitable Trust, Chaired by Sir Gerald Ronson CBE, will lead the effort to secure pledges towards the fundraising campaign.
Extensive consultation on the proposals has been carried out over many years, with contributions from a wide range of individuals and communities across the country.
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government what response they made to the request by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee that the plan to build a Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens on the Westminster World Heritage site be abandoned; and what discussions they had with the World Heritage Committee at its meeting in 2023 about that matter.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Government noted that the independent planning inspector concluded, following an extensive public inquiry in 2020, that “…the proposed UKHMLC would not result in compromise to the Outstanding Universal Value of the World Heritage Site because it does not harm it or its setting, thus conserving it”. DCMS, acting as State Party to the World Heritage Convention, will continue to keep UNESCO updated.
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government what options they are considering for the future management of the parts of Victoria Tower Gardens which will not be occupied by the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
Decisions on the future management arrangements for Victoria Tower Gardens will be agreed in good time before the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre opens.